Despite heading into a federal election, the Canadian government has voiced support for finding a long-term solution for the Fort Frances – International Falls bridge.
The comments came through a letter sent before the election writ dropped on Sunday, March 23, 2025, to Thunder Bay-Rainy River Liberal Party of Canada candidate and incumbent MP Marcus Powlowski. Powlowski’s office provided the response from Nathaniel Erskine-Smith, Canada’s minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities to the Times, as well as the original letter sent by Powlowski to the ministry to seek assistance on the issue of the international bridge, owned by Aazhogan LP, a partnership of Rainy River First Nations and the BMI Group.
“The Government of Canada recognizes that transportation infrastructure is important for our economic and social well-being,” Erskine-Smith wrote.
“Having already invested over $4 billion in almost 8,500 road and bridge projects across the country, we will continue that work to connect communities and keep people and goods moving… You have raised real challenges about the impact of tolls as a matter of fairness. I recognize that the bridge is a lifeline for the community and I can commit to working with you towards a long-term solution with our provincial and American partners.”
In his initial letter to the minister, Powlowski wrote that the change in toll costs has put “tremendous strain on the community of Fort Frances,” as many people in the region need to cross the border on a daily basis for work or family.
“Importantly, the Fort Frances-International Falls International Bridge is only one of two international bridges that are privately owned across Canada. Additionally, the bridge’s expected life is coming to an end, and it will soon need to be repaired or replaced,” Powlowski wrote.
“Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada has responsibility for supporting the upkeep and eventual replacement of this important international bridge under its mandate to invest in public infrastructure. Similar bridges, including a nearby bridge between Rainy River, Ontario, and Baudette, Minnesota, that was completed in 2020, have been funded by both the provincial and federal governments in collaboration with state and/or federal governments in the United States. I ask that the Government of Canada lead the way by committing to work with the Province of Ontario, the State of Minnesota, and the United States Government toward ensuring a toll-free bridge connecting Fort Frances and International Falls. The bridge is a lifeline for the community, and the town and surrounding areas need certainty that the federal government will be a partner in finding solutions to this pressing problem.”
While the government’s letter does not provide a timeframe or direct reference to how the federal government might step in to help alleviate the woes caused by high bridge tolls and its deteriorating condition, a renewed promise to be part of a solution is a good sign, according to Fort Frances mayor Andrew Hallikas. Hallikas said he and Powlowski have met and spoken regarding the bridge on numerous occasions, and that the new promise made by the federal government is good news for the community and everyone in the region.
“I, along with many others, both organisations and individuals have been working on a solution to the bridge,” Hallikas said.
“We actually were looking at two solutions, long term and short term. But the ideal solution is a long term solution, where we get a new bridge and either at much reduced fares or no tolls at all. I do want to give a shout out to all of the people that worked on this. Our member of Provincial Parliament, Greg Rickford, work on it. And of course, a lot of work has been done by our Member of Parliament Powlowski, but we’ve had the mayor of International Falls, a state rep from over there, even Amy Klobuchar’s office. We’ve have Canadian federal and provincial officials involved. So there’s been a lot of people working on this… I’m greatly heartened by that letter, so that’s some really positive news for our area.”
Whatever solution the government comes up with, Hallikas said it is important to him that the current owners of the bridge, the Aazhogan group, be made whole by the government, as they were the ones to step up and buy the bridge when no one else appeared willing.
“No one else was going to buy it, including our government,” Hallikas said.
“They purchased it, and they’ve maintained it, and they’ve kept it open, and they took a huge financial loss during COVID when the border was shut down. So I think it’s imperative that, they did the right thing for us, that the government does the right thing for them and makes them whole financially.”
The letters stop short of committing to a particular solution, so there are still plenty of questions surrounding what the final result of the government’s commitment will be, but Hallikas said it’s encouraging to have the federal ministry fully on board, something he hopes will encourage further cooperation between the various governments involved in the project.
“We’ve been pressuring both the Ministry of Transport and the Ministry of Infrastructure to get involved and help out, and finally we’ve got some success,” he said.
“There’s lots of unanswered questions. But this is a start, and I’m hoping now that we’re seeing our federal government take leadership and then cooperating and reaching out to the provincial government, because they were involved in the Baudette bridge, and the American government as well, and it would be a good chance to get some hands across the border cooperation going.”
